TCD Survey on Migration from Southern Europe and Ireland

Posted on: 24 June 2013

The impact of the economic crisis on migration and mobility in the EU is the focus of an online survey being conducted by TCD sociologists.

The online survey, being conducted by the Department of Sociology, is part of a research initiative which aims to understand in what ways the ongoing crisis has affected migration and mobility in the EU, and particularly in Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain. The research is being conducted in conjunction the Global Governance Programme of the European University Institute in Florence, Elcano Royal Institute in Madrid and the University of Lisbon.  

Dr Camilla Devitt, Assistant Professor in Sociology at Trinity College Dublin, commented: “Over the past five years, residents of Southern Europe and Ireland have been hard hit by the economic crisis and austerity measures, facing high levels of unemployment, a fall in salaries and welfare benefits, and a substantial deterioration of their professional development and quality of life. The employment crisis seems to have affected the young more than other age groups, with youth unemployment ranging between 29% and 58% in these countries.”

“It appears that many people have responded by leaving for other countries or continents. There has been a lot of media focus on these new waves of mobility and emigration, however we need to know more about who is actually leaving, where they are going, why they are departing, and what this means for the economies and societies of Southern Europe and Ireland.”

The survey will be conducted online until July 20th, 2013 and is available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Greek.